BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 2741
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 22, 2014

              ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND CONSUMER  
                                     PROTECTION
                               Susan A. Bonilla, Chair
               AB 2741 (Bonilla and Lieu) - As Amended:  April 10, 2014
           
          SUBJECT  :   Professional Fiduciaries Bureau.

           SUMMARY  :   Extends the sunset date on the Professional  
          Fiduciaries Bureau (PFB) from January 1, 2015 to January 1,  
          2019. 

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Establishes PFB under the jurisdiction of the Department of  
            Consumer Affairs (DCA), and vests the duty of enforcing and  
            administering the Professional Fiduciary Law in the PFB chief.  
             (Business and Professions Code (BPC) Section 6510)

          2)Establishes a Professional Fiduciaries Advisory Committee to  
            examine the functions and policies of PFB and make  
            recommendations with respect to policies, practices, and  
            regulations as may be deemed important and necessary by the  
            PFB chief.  (BPC 6511)

          3)Sunsets PFB on January 1, 2015, and transfers the  
            responsibilities and jurisdiction of PFB to the Professional  
            Fiduciaries Advisory Committee.  (BPC 6510) 

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   None.  This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the  
          Legislative Counsel.

           COMMENTS  :   

           1)Purpose of this bill  .  This bill simply extends the sunset  
            date for PFB by four years to January 1, 2019, and makes a  
            small technical correction.  This bill is author-sponsored.  

           2)Author's statement  .  According to the author's office, "This  
            bill is necessary because if the Bureau is allowed to sunset,  
            the responsibilities and jurisdiction of the Bureau will be  
            transferred to the Professional Fiduciaries Advisory  
            Committee.  PFB has a new chief who works in tandem with a  
            dedicated advisory committee; I look forward to their  








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            continued management of the profession." 

           3)Regulation of Professional Fiduciaries  .  The Professional  
            Fiduciaries Act (Act) was created in 2006 (SB 1550 Figueroa)  
            (Chapter 491, Statutes of 2006).  PFB was established to  
            license and regulate non-family member Professional  
            Fiduciaries (PFs), including conservators, guardians,  
            trustees, and agents under durable power of attorney.  The  
            Bureau currently licenses 638 PFs.    

            PFs provide critical services to seniors, disabled persons,  
            and minors.  They manage matters for clients including daily  
            care, housing and medical needs, and also offer financial  
            management services ranging from basic bill paying to estate  
            and investment management. 

            In order to qualify for licensure, an applicant must be at  
            least 21 years old, be a US citizen or be legally admitted to  
            the United States, submit fingerprints and pass a background  
            check, pass an examination that includes national and state  
            components, and have either a baccalaureate degree, an  
            associate degree and three years' relevant work experience, or  
            at least five years' relevant work experience prior to 2012.  

            Requirements for licensure also include completing 30 hours of  
            approved pre-licensure education courses and earning 15 hours  
            of continuing education (CE) credit each year for renewal.  
            Licensees must comply with reporting requirements and abide by  
            the Professional Fiduciaries Code of Ethics.

            The Bureau began operation on July 1, 2007, and is charged  
            with the following responsibilities:

             a)   Educating consumers about their rights;

             b)   Promoting legal and ethical standards of professional  
               conduct;

             c)   Investigating the background of applicants;

             d)   Administering licensing examinations;

             e)   Licensing PFs; 

             f)   Investigating complaints from consumers; and,








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             g)   Taking disciplinary action and issuing citations.

            The Bureau Chief is appointed by the Governor, subject to  
            Senate confirmation, and serves under the direction and  
            supervision of the Director of the Department of Consumer  
            Affairs (DCA) and at the pleasure of the Governor.

           4)2014 Sunset Review Report  .  On March 17, 2014, the Senate  
            Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee and  
            the Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection  
            Committee held a joint sunset review hearing to hear testimony  
            from PFB as to its performance and the necessity for  
            continuing its existence by extending its sunset date.  

            The Sunset review report drafted by this Committee recommended  
            that PFB continue operations until the next review in 2019,  
            and in the meantime:

             a)   Consider reducing fees sufficient to avoid accumulating  
               a 24 month reserve if PFB cannot get budget authority to  
               hire additional staff;

             b)   Brief the Legislature on the potential pool of new PFs  
               and provide reasonable yearly targets for attracting new  
               licensees; and,

             c)   Discuss with the Legislature and DCA whether to maintain  
               PFB independently if its current staffing and licensing  
               levels do not change.  

           1)Related legislation  .  AB 2024 (Bonilla) of 2014 revises the  
            Professional Fiduciaries Act to permit PFB to establish a  
            "retired" and "inactive" status for licensees, provided that  
            licenses may not be renewed, restored or reinstated after  
            three years expiration, and clarifies the ability of PFB to  
            investigate the actions of any PF, even if that person has a  
            retired, inactive, canceled, or suspended license.  That bill  
            will be heard in the Assembly Business, Professions and  
            Consumer Protection Committee on April 22, 2014.    
             
             AB 1859 (Maienschein) of 2014 permits PFs to form Licensed  
            Professional Fiduciary Corporations.  That bill will be heard  
            in the Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection  
            Committee on April 22, 2014.     








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           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          None on file.

           Opposition 
           
          None on file.
           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Sarah Huchel / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)  
          319-3301